The Compromise
by MarshmallowSun
Summary: Gilbert wants Roderich, but he can't have him. However, after finding out that Matthew is head-over-heels in love with me, Gilbert devises a plan that will make Matthew happy, and will get Roderich too. What could possibly go wrong?
1. Chapter 1

Started as a birthday present, continued for fun :3  
>I've been too lazy to update this, lol. I finished the third chapter the day before her birthday, March 10. So yeah, is lazy. =_=<strong><br>**Anyway. HAPPY LATE BIRTHDAY, EDZYYYYYYYYY~~~

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><p>"...and that's why I'm the most awesome person ever! Of course, you guys are pretty awesome too!"<br>Gilbert grinned at the group of people crowding around him. Damn, he was awesome and damn he knew it too. His audience were all making exclamations of praise, he just stood there letting the comments wash over him. He'd heard them all hundreds of times before, of course, but he didn't care.  
>"You're so awesome it's scary!"<br>"Aww, thank you! But you're still way more awesome than us!"  
>"Awesome! So awesome!"<br>"Five metres all the way, huh?"

These were his favourite replies. Anything about his being awesome, or about his five metres, made him happy.  
>He opened his scarlet eyes and surveyed the crowd, looking for a certain face. As usual, the little Baltic kids were there, so was Lily, her brother glaring at him, trying to convince her to come away. And of course, Alfred stood in front of the rest, ranting about being the hero and that he was just as awesome as the albino.<br>Feliciano next to him, holding onto his boyfriend Ludwig's hand. Gilbert sighed inwardly. As nice as it was to have all these loyal followers, what he really wanted was a boyfriend. He knew who he wanted, and he also knew that said boy didn't like him back.

There were a few other people, who he didn't recognise. But _he_ wasn't there... The one person he wanted to praise him, acknowledge his existence, wasn't here. No, he was sitting at a table far away from him, talking to that stupid girlfriend of his.

And- wait, who was that at the back of the crowd?  
>Oh, yeah... Matthew, Alfred's half-brother.<br>Actually, Gilbert thought, he was here quite often, standing at the back of the group, listening to the Prussian's rants, smiling softly, never talking. He was so quiet, most of the time he was almost invisible. Sometimes his name wasn't even called out in rollcall. Gilbert felt a bit of pity for the invisible kid. Alfred seemed to be the only person who even knew about his existence; if anyone else did, they had forgotten it soon after learning about it. Gilbert smiled at him, to show he acknowledged his presence. Matthew blushed slightly, and turned his gaze to the toy polar bear he always carried with him.  
>A sixteen year old with a teddy. Huh.<p>

Gilbert was thinking about walking over and talking to the Canadian, when Feliciano, the adorable little Italian kid with no parents, suddenly said, "Ve... Gilbert? Is there anyone you like? It seems strange that someone so awesome doesn't have a girlfriend..." he looked at Ludwig. "...Or a boyfriend..."

Gilbert blinked. "Ahhh... Well... there is someone...but... they do not like me.." he looked away. He didn't want to talk about 'that person' at the moment.  
>The others immediately answered in a chorus of replies, either asking who it was, or expressing their horror that anyone could POSSIBLY not like the awesome pale haired boy.<br>Well, other than the teachers.

Gilbert laughed nervously. "um... I'll tell you who tomorrow..." he said.  
>He glanced at Matthew, who still had his face buried in his bear.<br>_Poor kid..._ he thought. _No one even knows his name..._  
>His concentration was fully on the other boy, and he completely forgot about everyone else; he didn't hear them asking if the person he liked was them.<p>

Matthew looked up to see Gilbert staring at him, looking like he was lost in thought. He had been listening to the conversation, and after saying that he would tell the others who he liked tomorrow, he had started staring at him. Him! Gilbert was staring at him! B-but, surely he wasn't... no, that would be impossible. Of course Gilbert didn't like him. He was a nobody. No one knew who he was... Gilbert probably was looking right through him... He was so invisible after all.. He sighed and looked back at Kuma... Kuro... Kumokura...? Well, his polarbear. Whatever its name was... _Even though you named it, idiot.. You don't know its name...  
><em>_  
><em>Gilbert, meanwhile, had turned his thoughts to what he was meant to do about the others. Stupid him, saying he would announce his crush tomorrow...  
>He looked at the boy in question again. The Austrian kid, Roderich. Gilbert wasnt sure why he liked him, he just did. They had grown up together, with Elizaveta, who was now Roderich's girlfriend, damnit. Sure, he had liked her in year five but now... Now he had turned down a different road, preferring boys over girls, while Roderich and their Hungarian friend had continued down the 'main road'. Roderich especially was so damn old-fashioned with everything he did, damnit. Especially when it came to love... Anyway, back to the main problem.<br>So he had a day to come up with something. Knowing the group, they would probably run up to the rich brat he liked so much en masse and scream at him, ask how he could POSSIBLY not want Gilbert, their awesome sexy idol. And then... Well, Gilbert didn't want to think about that. So he had to think of something, make up a name, anything, as long as it got the attention off his oldest friend.

Gilbert looked at Matthew. Gott, that kid really needed to make an impression on people. What was he meant to do if he fell and broke his arm? No one would notice him and he'd be left to get himself home somehow. Sure, Gilbert was awesome enough to worry about him like that, because his awesomeness wouldn't let him leave someone less awesome than himself in pain or anything, but seriously, the kid needed to make people notice him.  
><em>So<em>, Gilbert decided, _after I've solved my current problem, I'll move onto operation Make Matthew Visible...  
><em>

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><p>I should probably mentio<em>n<em>, this fic is set in Australia,purely because I have no knowledge of schools overseas and because I can and because it's awesome.  
>And yet they seem to have a cafeteria and I say mom. But only when it's Alfred or Mattie speaking. I don't even know. So yeah. And seriously, I have no idea about the school's layout. Its kinda like my school's, in terms of where the buildings are, but then if it's modelled like that, WHERE THE HELL IS THIS CAFETERIA FITTING? Our canteens tiny. UGH I have no idea. I think I'll leave it up to you.. eh heh.. <em><em>


	2. Chapter 2

OH. and to anyone reading Summer or one of my other fics. I haven't been updating because I just can NOT write lately :/ I'm sorryyyy..

By the way: Shelly is Seychelles :)

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><p>Lunch was over.<br>Gilbert walked to his next class, history. Alfred, Shelly and Feliciano were also in his class, and he let them talk. Matthew was in his history class too, but Gilbert couldn't see him. Either he was behind them or already there. _He could be next to me for all I know..._ he thought guiltily.  
>Sighing, Gilbert tuned back into the conversation. The others were discussing whether or not they should all announce their crushes tomorrow. After all, if the Awesome One was, why shouldn't they? Maybe it would even make them more awesome!<p>

Gilbert looked at Alfred, who was currently speaking. "Well, I'm more than happy to say!" he stated, grinning.

Shelly sighed and hit him gently with her textbook. "We all know you're shagging our history teach, Alfie. You don't need to brag about it. Especially in front of the other teachers. I'm pretty sure it's considered illegal?"

They all laughed, Alfred especially. Gilbert joined them. He decided to forget about the Canadian for a while, his friends were so much fun to hang out with. Matthew could wait until the end of the period, at least.  
>Feliciano started to say something about not really needing to say anything; more than half the school knew about him and Ludwig. They were interrupted by their teacher, Mr Braginsky.<br>"Privyet, class~! How are we all?"

The class all replied that they were well, some softer than others; quite a few of the students were scared of the Russian.  
>Except Alfred, of course. "Afternoon, sir!" he grinned.<br>Mr Braginsky looked at the American. "And good afternoon to you, Alfred. Do you plan on working this lesson?"  
>Alfred laughed. "Maybe, sir. I wouldn't count on it though."<br>Their teacher sighed. "How do your parents put up with you..." he muttered.  
>"Because I'm the hero! Now can we go in yet, sir?"<br>The Russian just shook his head. "Alright then..."

The class filed in, mostly standing in the middle of the room, wondering where to sit.  
>"Boy-girl sitting, please. As there are more boys than girls, one of you boys can pretend to be a girl for the next hour and a half. Any takers?"<p>

The class fell silent. Of course, the idiot blond broke that silence. "I'm more than happy to do it, sir! Don't I make a hot chick, everyone?"  
>Everyone laughed at their class clown. Alfred, ever the joker, took an elastic band that happened to be around his wrist and attempted to tie his hair in a pony tail. He let his voice go high-pitched, and did a disturbingly accurate impression of Paris Hilton.<p>

"You're actually very good at this feminine stuff, eh Alfred? You could fool someone with that, da ze!"  
>Alfred didn't drop his act, giggling as he walked over to his Korean friend, Im Yun Soo.<p>

"It's what happens when you're uke for so long~!" he answered, winking at their teacher.

Shelly looked at her friend in horror. "Has he no shame?" she sighed.  
>"Nope~!" came the blond's reply.<p>

Gilbert patted Shelly's arm sympathetically. Neither of them understood how the American could be so open about his relationship with the Russian teacher. The whole class knew about it, as well as their little gang, and maybe a few others.

Gilbert wondered absently if anyone would particularly care if he told them he liked Roderich. Probably not, when he thought about it. But still..

"Right... That's enough out of you, Jones. Unless you want detention, I suggest you keep quiet." Mr Braginsky said, clearly he had had enough of the American and wanted to start the lesson.  
>Alfred laughed, and nodded. "Sure, sir. Whatever you say. But, y'know, detention with you isn't that much of a punishment..." He smirked.<p>

The Russian just sighed and muttered, "Just sit somewhere and let me start, will you..."  
>"But now that the joke's over... Can't we just sit wherever?"<br>"If you insist. As long as you lot do your work, I'm not fussed."

The desks were all set in threes, two to a desk, so there were six at each table; two facing each other in a square and another pushed against them.

Shelly and Feliciano sat opposite Alfred and Im Yun, with Gilbert at the other table on his own. According to Feli, his awesomeness meant he should always sit at the head of the table, to show superiority or something. It was nice, but it made Gilbert just the tiniest bit lonely. Maybe next time they had history, in two days, he could switch with one of the others...  
>"Okay, where you're sitting now is where you'll be for the rest of the term, alright?"<p>

Great. Well, maybe someone would sit next to him. Please have someone sit next to me...

"So, is everyone okay with where they're sitting? And everyone has a seat? Yes?"

Gilbert sighed. So much for that... He looked at his hand, studying his nails. Oh well, there were other subjects...

"Oh! Matthew! I'm sorry! I didn't see you there! You don't have a seat, hm? Well.." Mr Braginsky scanned the room. Nearly every seat was taken, the only free one was next to Gilbert, and he wasn't sure that the narcissistic albino would want the invisible kid next to him...  
>"Gilbert...? It seems the other seats are taken... Would Matthew be able to sit next to you?" he asked hopefully.<p>

Gilbert looked up. What? Not only was someone sitting next to him, it was the kid he wanted to help people notice? God sure loved him at the moment! But of course he did. Gilbert was awesome! So of course fate had decided that Matthew of all people would be the one to sit next to him! Man, he was so awesome...  
>For a moment, he spaced out, basking in his awesomeness, the Canadian and teacher forgotten.<p>

Matthew, meanwhile, was hugging his polar bear tightly, half hiding behind the teacher. He hoped Gilbert would let him.. He really, really wanted the German boy to notice him..

"Gilbert...?"

Gilbert snapped his head forward. "What? Oh, right, sorry! Uh.. Yeah, sure! Of course! Glad to have ya, Mattie! Welcome to the Table of Awesomeness!"

Matthew smiled inwardly. He had said yes! He would be able to sit next to the self-proclaimed Prussian for the rest of the term... He was so happy! But he kept it inside. He didn't want the other to think he was weird or something...  
>Well, weirder than he already was, being invisible and all..<br>Matthew moved over to the desk, leaving his bag on the floor and sitting down, not letting go of his precious bear.  
>"U-um... Hi..." he mumbled, inwardly cursing himself for being so shy.<br>Gilbert grinned at him. "Yo! Damn you're lucky, getting to sit next to the awesomeness of me!"  
>Matthew giggled nervously, hiding his face in his bear's soft white fur. "Y-yes..."<p>

"Hey, who's that?" Shelly asked. "New kid?"  
>Gilbert looked at his friend. "What? Matthew's been here since year seven! Silly Shell," Gilbert told her.<p>

Feliciano blinked. "Ve... I don't know you." he said bluntly. "Are you a ghost?"  
>Matthew shook his head behind the polar bear.<p>

Alfred looked up. He had been too busy staring at the teacher's ass... Damn he wanted to slap it...  
>"Holyfuckingaliens, who are you?" he exclaimed when he noticed Matthew.<br>"Your half-brother..." said Canadian replied softly.

"I have a half-brother?"  
>"Yes!" Matthew replied, pulling away from his beloved toy to answer his brother.<p>

"Who's your dad?" Alfred interrogated.  
>"Francis... Our PD teacher..."<p>

"Well, mine's Arthur Kirkland. The stupid English teacher with the monster eyebrows. So who's your mom?"  
>"...Your dad..."<p>

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><p>Well, Edwina, you asked for the Russia X America so there you go. Happy now? XD<br>As an added note, if anyone wants a pairing added, just ask me and as long as it doesn't interfere with my plans.. Which it probably won't :3 So please, feel free to request anything you want~!


	3. Chapter 3

AAAAAND this is all you'll be seeing of me for the next seven years =_= I apologise about the deadness of my brain. Anyway love you all~

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><p>"WHAT."<p>

Gilbert, meanwhile, was laughing uncontrollably. The American's face only made it worse, and soon the laughter spread to the rest of the table, the brothers still looking serious, although Matthew was having trouble keeping the emotion down. The look on his brother's face was so adorable, and the laughter was contagious.

"B-but... How is that even possible...?" Alfred swallowed, beginning to recover from the initial shock.

Matthew shrugged. "How would I know? Ask papa!"

Gilbert grinned. The Canadian could be pretty funny when he wanted to, even unintentionally..  
><em>Good<em>, he thought. It would help make the Operation easier.

"Hey, Mattie.. You don't mind me calling you that, do you? Good. So, anyway, as I was saying... Is it true? Mr Eyebrows is your mom?" Gilbert asked.

"...Mattie...? Uhhh... Okay... And, um, yes... He is..." Matthew blushed and returned to hiding behind Kurakumo.  
><em>Gilbert made up a nickname for me!<em> He thought. _Gilbert did!  
><em>Matthew was just so, so happy... He felt like he was about to faint. In fact, he knew he probably would. Gilbert was being so nice to him... And because of Gilbert, the others were beginning to notice him, too! This was a good day, and it could only get better, surely...

"Yo, Mattie!"  
>Matthew blinked. "Uh! Yes?"<p>

Gilbert sighed. "You spaced out there.. You okay? You're not sick or something are you?"

Matthew shook his head, dazed. Gilbert cared about him...  
>It was too much. He moaned and fell forward, collapsing on Kurojiko. The last thing he was aware of was Gilbert shouting something, to who he wasn't sure, and two arms pulling him upright, Korukiju left on the desk as he was carried away to the sick bay.<p>

_Gilbert... Gilbert is carrying me... Gilbert is... Gilbert... Gilbert... Gilbert...  
><em>-  
>"Hey! You're awake!"<p>

Matthew blinked, the light was so much brighter than the darkness that he had been surrounded in for however long he had been unconscious. "nnnnnnnn..."  
>He opened his eyes fully, sat up, Gilbert staring at him, and collapsed again. Well, shit.<p>

"Hey, hey, hey... are you alright?" Gilbert put his hand on the Canadian's forehead. "You're still burning up... UGH, where is the nurse when you need her?"

'Still'...? Gilbert had checked his temperature earlier, while he was sleeping? Ohh, why hadn't he been awake?  
>Damnit... His mind was all foggy and Matthew was having trouble staying awake.. But no, he didn't want Gilbert thinking he was weak or something... He had to stay awake, keep the sleep away... away... keep.. keep... awake... keep... keep... keep...<p>

-  
>The next time Matthew woke up, Gilbert was no where in sight.<br>Matthew sighed sadly, drawing the attention of the nurse who had reappeared since the last time he had been awake.  
>"Oh, you're up? That's good. Feeling better?" she asked.<br>Matthew tried to sit up, mumbling that he was.  
>"Well, you're not fully recovered, but you're looking better than when you came in, and your temperature has dropped considerably since then. I must say, you have a nice friend, he's been waiting here the whole time, and hasn't stopped bothering me! He's gone to get his bag, though, he left it in the class you were in when you fainted. I'm surprised that the teachers let him stay here rather than go to class, but then again it IS Gilbert, I suppose. He gets away with quite a lot..."<p>

Oh, maple. Class.  
>Matthew had completely forgotten.<br>And his bag was still in his History room... He hoped he would get a chance to collect it; he didn't want to trouble one of the nurses to get it for him..  
>And, double maple, that meant he had missed the French test... Damn. For anyone else, it would probably be okay, but Matthew was so invisible he doubted the French teacher would remember to give him the test...<br>Oh... Hadn't the nurse said that Gilbert had been with him the whole time? That meant that the albino had missed it too...  
>Matthew wondered what time it was, and whether he had time before school ended to ask the teacher for a copy of the test so he could do it at home...<p>

!

The loud wailing of the bell answered his question.  
>Great, school was over. Oh well, there was always tomorrow...<p>

Matthew wondered absently how he was going to get home. The school bus would have been and gone by the time he felt good enough to leave the sick bay...  
>He supposed he could ask papa for a lift, he always stayed at school for at least an hour, but then Matthew run the risk of walking in on a mind scarring scene...<br>How his Papa and mum could have sex in a storage room at school never really made sense to the Canadian.  
>Oh well... Looks like I'm walking... Matthew thought, sighing heavily. it was a two hour walk and he really wanted to get home and finish his school work. Then he wanted to sleep until Christmas.<p>

"Ah, you're back!"

Matthew looked up at the sound of the nurse's voice. His eyes brightened a little as he heard Gilbert reply.

"Yo, Mattie!" The grinning albino saluted as he walked over to the Canadian. "Feeling better now? Of course you are, the Awesome One is here. Oh, I brought your bag."  
>"Th-thank you..." Matthew managed.<br>And then he remembered something else. "-ah! Ku... Ko... Kujikari... I left him..."  
>Gilbert nodded, waving his hand to silence the other. "Do you really think that the Awesome would forget your bear? Here ya go!"<p>

Matthew hugged the soft bear tightly. "Thank you so much.." he mumbled, burying his face in the toy as usual.

Gilbert yawned and sat down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. "So, how are you getting home? I'm assuming you're not going to make the school bus?"  
>Matthew shook his head. "No... I'm going to miss it... And I can't ask my papa for a lift, he's... busy... So, I have to walk..." he groaned at the prospect.<p>

Gilbert glanced at the younger boy. "Is it far?"  
>"Y-yeah... A bit under two hours..."<p>

Gilbert whistled, eyes narrowing in sympathy. "Well, damn..."  
>"W-well... What about you? I mean... You never get the bus..."<p>

"Nah, not far. About fifteen minutes, twenty max, cause I have my bike, which makes it faster."  
>Matthew took his face away from his bear, looking into the albino's blood red eyes. "Oh... That's good... Oh, and, um... Th-thanks... For waiting here and stuff... No one else seems to notice me..."<p>

Gilbert gave him a half-smile. "No prob! But you seriously need to make yourself, like, more visible, yeah? The awesome one won't always be here y'know? Whatcha meant to do if you get into trouble? And, like, if I weren't here you'd have to walk home!"

Matthew tilted his head, confused. "But don't I still have to walk...?"  
>"Weeeell, you would have to, but you can crash at my place if you'd rather. And I'm assuming you do, cause I'm awesome and seriously, who wants to walk for two hours?"<p>

Matthew didn't reply. Ohhh, today was the best day ever... And it looked like it was going to get better... Oh, maple, he was gonna faint again wasn't he...

"Uhh, hey, don't faint again... Okay, you are most definitely not walking home, you'll get yourself killed." Gilbert waved his hand in front of the younger boy's face. "...Do I have to carry you again? I mean, you're not heavy so it's not a problem but y'know, looks weird... And I can't ride my bike with you unconscious.. And shit, I'm not carrying you the whole way to my house... Don't you dare faint, okay?"

Matthew's only reply was to fall back and faint for the third time that day.


	4. Chapter 4

This chapter was actually really fun to write~ Well the second half was. That doesn't mean it didn't totally fail though. FFFFF I'm sorry. Don't throw tomatoes at me, please " Throw them at Romano or Spain if you have to throw them! o3o**  
><strong>

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><p>Thmp, thmp, click, thmp, thmp...<br>As Matthew began to return to consciousness he realised he was swaying slightly. Was he on a boat or something? No, that didn't make sense... And what was that noise...? He was hugging something warm.. Kumakichi, maybe? No, that was wrong too..

Matthew opened his eyes slowly. And immediately shut them again, in fear of fainting yet again.  
>Gilbert was carrying him on his back, pushing his bike along, with their bags on the handles and Kujakirou on the seat.<br>Matthew's face went bright red, and though he thought it would be better to jump off and walk, to stop bothering the albino, he was too high in heaven and he couldn't make himself pull away from the boy he loved. Unconsciously he tightened his grip around Gilbert's neck, making the boy smile slightly.  
>"You're awake, eh?" he said.<br>Matthew made a noise signaling that he was. "How long have I been out?"

"Not long.. Maybe ten minutes? Cause I waited for the nurse to come back, and she said you'd be okay to go once you woke up.. But we had no idea how much longer until you woke up so I just left." Gilbert laughed. "And it took ages to get my bike cause it's locked and I was carrying you.. But anyway. The school's only about two minutes back there. So yeah, about ten minutes."

"Sorry for the inconvenience..." Matthew mumbled. "I mean, you can't ride your bike with me unconscious.. I'm awake now so I can walk..."

"Nah, it's okay, you weigh like, nothing. And it's the first time in about six years that I've given someone a piggyback.. It's kinda fun." Gilbert laughed again. "And 'sides, you're probably not good to walk. And your Mr Polarbear is using the bike anyway.. No room!"

Matthew smiled a little at this, feeling somewhat relieved that he stay like this, with his chest pressed against the Prussian's warm back. Still, he felt bad about having Gilbert carry him around..  
>"No, really, it's fine... I'll be okay... I can carry Jirokuma... Really, it's okay..."<br>Besides, Matthew risked fainting yet again if he let Gilbert continue carrying him...

Gilbert sighed. Obviously the Canadian wasn't going to listen to him, and would probably just jump off if Gilbert didn't let him go. But as the wavy haired boy was liable to pass out at any minute, Gilbert wasn't about let him walk.  
>"Fine... But I'm not letting you walk. We'll use my bike, okay?"<p>

"A-alright... But will we both fit?" Matthew asked as he slid off the other boy's back, picking up his polar bear and shoving it in his bag. It would only get in the way anyway.  
>"Ja, of course!" Gilbert laughed as he hopped on the bike, steadying it with his foot and gesturing to Matthew for him to get on behind him.<p>

"If you're sure..." Matthew said, climbing onto the bike, trying his best to make as little contact with the albino as he could.

Gilbert looked over his shoulder. Matthew was holding onto the seat and trying desperately to stay on.  
>"You know, you'll never get anywhere like that," Gilbert grinned. "Put your arms round my waist. C'moooon, it's alright. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, ya know!"<p>

Matthew blushed. "U-um..." God only knew how much he wanted to... But he couldn't.  
>Gilbert sighed. "No one's gonna notice, alright? And if they do, they're not gonna care! Two people share a bike, not much choice in how you ride, yeah?"<br>Gilbert waited for a few seconds, and was about to grab the Canadian's arms when Matthew finally managed to unfreeze and loop his arms around the boy in front of him.

"See, is it that bad?"

Matthew shook his head. "N-no..."

Gilbert grinned. "Then off we go~!"

As Gilbert rode the bike down various roads and backstreets, his mind went back to the promise he had made earlier that day. "Ugh... This sucks.." he muttered, not noticing he had spoken out loud.

Matthew blinked, wondering if Gilbert was referring to their current situation. "U-uh? Um... Should I get off?"

Gilbert, realising that Matthew had heard, shook his head, saying, "What? Oh, no, no! It's fine. Sorry, I was just thinking aloud.. You're good."

Matthew nodded slowly, relieved. "A-ah, okay... Um, if you don't mind me asking, what are you thinking about? Maybe I can help with something?"

Gilbert turned his head to look at the younger boy who was looking at him earnestly. He looked back to the road in front of him and didn't say anything for a while. Eventually, when they had turned down a deserted backstreet, he spoke. "Um.. Well, you know at lunch today... I said I'd tell everyone who I like... But I don't want them to go up to that person and attack them or something... So I don't know what to do.. What should I do? Make up a name? Say that they don't go to our school? Not in the country?"

Matthew leaned into the Prussian's back, formulating an answer in his head. "Well.. It's not good to lie, but if you're worried for that person's safety, then it's probably for the best.." Still he chased after the tiny hope that that person was him.. He shook away the thought and after taking a deep breath, he continued. "But I suppose it depends. Do you know why that person doesn't like you? Are you sure they don't? Maybe they do, and you just haven't noticed...?"

Gilbert laughed. "Haha, I'm sure they don't. If it weren't for a certain old friend of mine who grew up and stole that person from me, then maybe I had a chance..."

"O-oh... I see.." Matthew mumbled. Unconsciously he tightened his grip on Gilbert's waist. When he thought about it, he probably shouldn't assume that Gilbert was gay just because he was. And Alfred was. And Feliciano and Ludwig and Matthew's parents were. There wasn't that much of a chance, right? That would be far too convenient."Sorry if I am being too intrusive, but would I know this person?"

Gilbert tilted his head. "Ehhh, I'm not sure. You might... It's not like he hangs out with us ever. Too busy with his bitchy girlfriend."

Matthew blinked. "He..? Ahh.." He smiled to himself. Maybe he still had a chance... Maybe...  
>Or not. Ugh, why couldn't he get the part of him that wouldn't stop screaming that fuck, he wanted Gilbert, what would he have to do to get Gilbert to like him back, to just SHUT UP. Although, when the one you have loved for so long is so close to you... He couldn't really complain.<p>

Meanwhile, Gilbert was turning red. "Shit, I didn't mean to say that... Errrr..."

They didn't speak for the next few minutes. The silence was broken by Gilbert, who said, "A-anyway... We're here..."

Matthew opened his eyes and pulled himself out of his thoughts. "Ah.." was all he said as he climbed off the bike and took his bag from off the handlebar, immediately pulling his polar bear out and hugging it tight enough to strangle any live being half to death.

Gilbert gave him a half smile as he pushed the bike against the wall. Matthew tried to smile back, and watched the other sling his bag over his shoulder. Gilbert tried the doorknob on the front door, but stepped back as he realised it was locked.  
>"Eh, no one's home yet. Back door it is!" he grinned as he led Matthew around the side of the house. "If the back door's locked too, which it might cause Dad has suddenly become, like, Security King, my window's there and we can climb into my room," Gilbert pointed to the window to his room, though it was blocked by a balcony as it was on the second floor.<p>

Gilbert tried the back door, and laughed as he confirmed that it was also locked. "Hnnnn, my window it is. Actually, it's probably easier if you wait here and I get in and unlock the back door, eh? Unless you can climb!"

Matthew smiled. "I can climb. But you seem rather confident about climbing up.. How often do you get locked out?"

Gilbert stuck his tongue out. "What are you suggesting?" Matthew simply continued smiling. "...Okay so like, once a week maybe. Twice a week. Nearly every day." Matthew laughed. "What? Finding my key is too much effort, why bother when I can show my awesome and climb in through my window?"

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "Show off to who? The old lady next door?"

"Okay, one, there is no old lady next door and two... Two is... That I'm awesome. Yup. Anyway, I'll climb up first, so watch the awesome and be amazed~!"

As Gilbert was climbing up to his balcony, Matthew decided to study the wall. He smirked, put Kumajirou back in his bag and followed Gilbert up. "Conveniently low railing," he commented.

Gilbert laughed. "Ja, whoever made this place obviously anticipated that someone as awesome as me would be moving in here at sometime in the near future!"

"I seem to recall you bragging about how your parents designed this house and that you helped with the design of your room as well of other parts of the house?"

Gilbert stopped laughing. "Hey, that's not fair! You're not meant to remember that! I told you guys that when we first moved in! That was when we were like, six! How the hell did you remember that?"

"First of all we were nine and secondly, I have a good memory." Matthew grinned at the look of horror on the German boy's face. "And also. The bricks on that part of the wall, where we climbed up, are arranged in a way that leaves perfectly sized ledges for climbing up."

Gilbert pouted and crossed his arms. "What of it? It just proves that everything becomes more awesome when I'm near!"

"Sure, sure, whatever you say, Oh Amazingly Awesome One!" Matthew bowed in an over exaggerated manner, and when he looked back at Gilbert, the boy had his usual cocky grin on his face. "That's more like it!" he grinned. "Praise me! Kneel before me, minions! I am the Awesome One, here to bring awesomeness to your otherwise boring lives! So bow down to me!"

"I wouldn't dream of doing anything that didn't please you, Awesome One! Now, can I have something to drink, please?"

Gilbert laughed. "The world needs more people like you, Mattie!"

"What, invisible kids that no one thinks twice about?"

Gilbert frowned. "Nein. You're not invisible. Well okay you are. But we can work on that, yeah? Anyway, I meant more awesome minions who will obey my command! Who else will save you all from the upcoming Zombie Apocalypse? Yeah, that's right, you mortals are all screwed unless you follow me towards the greater tomorrow!"

Matthew giggled. "Yes, yes, amazingly awesome speech as always, King of Awesome. Now on a more serious note, I'm not kidding, I will strip you of your awesomeness, Zombie Apocalypse be damned, if I don't drink something soon!"

Gilbert laughed and ruffled the Canadian's hair, ignoring the yelp of protest. "How dare you speak that way to your King! Continue this behaviour and you are at risk of loosing all chance of ever being awesome!" Matthew gave him a look that clearly said 'stop. Get off me. Leave my hair alone. Now.' although of course Gilbert ignored it and only played with Matthew's hair more. "Hey, this is fun~ Your hair's so soft! And yes, yes, I shall head out on a mission to get my little minion a drink! I shall head out immediately!" He turned and slid the glass door open and beckoned for Matthew to follow him into his room. "Wait here for a minute, I shall be back before you can say 'God, Gilbert is just so awesome'!"

With that, he left the room, thinking to himself what an awesome minion Mattie was. Once they did something about the whole invisibility thing, he would be a perfect role model and soon the whole world would have no choice but to submit to his reign of awesomeness! He cackled loudly as he flew down the stairs. He was one step closer to Total Awesomeness! It wouldn't be long now... Ohh, he could hardly wait!


	5. Chapter 5

BDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Aren't you lucky, two chapters at once and a third probably not far away. Cause I'm on fire with this at the moment XD  
>SO this chap was also fun and also fail. I interrupt the Prunada to bring you..<br>My OTP. Just for you, Eddy. Cause you wanted RusAme, so you haters can hate all you want, it won't change the fact that LOL THIS CHAPTER IS RUSSIAXAMERICA NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA~~~~  
>(if you hadn't noticed already, I love Russiamerica more than life. Seriously.)<p>

* * *

><p>Alfred walked down the street, thinking about what his half brother had said. Matthew's father was Alfred's mother... So who was Alfred's mother? To be a half-sibling you had to have one parent in common right? But if Matthew's parents were Arthur and Francis and Alfred had no idea who his mother was, they weren't really half-brothers, were they?<br>Unless...

Oh god.

It all made sense now.

Alfred felt sickened by the thought, but then was overcome by a huge rage. Arthur had never told him. He had just said "your mother isn't here any more," not "dead," not "with someone else," just not here. Alfred jumped over the fence of his house, not bothering with the gate. He wrenched the door open and stormed into the living room, where Arthur was sitting on the couch, drinking tea and enjoying his day off.

"You never told me!" Alfred snarled.

Arthur blinked once or twice. What was his son on about now?  
>"...What?"<p>

"'_Your mother is not here,_' that's all you ever said. Well guess what, I was talking with my half-brother, Ma...Ne... whatever his name is. And guess what he said. You're his mother. And Francis is mine, isn't he? Fuck you! You never told me! How could you?"

Arthur stared at the blond who was glaring at him. For a minute he just sat there, unable to reply.  
>"W-well... Yes... Um... This is awkward. I...I.." he stammered.<p>

"Shut it, Kirkland. I'm fucking pissed off. There is no excuse for not telling me. And Francis... Fuck, how could he just stand there teaching me about all the muscles in the arm without feeling even SLIGHTLY guilty? Or did you not tell him that I didn't know. I bet you didn't. You're unbelievable." Alfred exhaled heavily. "I'm fucking tired. I'm gonna go sleep. Don't even think of disturbing me or I'll fucking throw my PSP at you. Wait, bad plan. That thing's expensive. I'll throw a schoolbook or something. Probably heavy. Preferably sharp. ANYWAY, good night, dad. Mum. Whatever you are."

And with that Alfred stomped upstairs, slamming his door after him, leaving Arthur to stare blankly at the stairs as his tea got cold.

* * *

><p>Ivan sighed and contemplated answering his phone, which was playing a cover of an old Russian folk-song with the volume up far too high. He picked it up and looked at the number; 'Hero'. Oh great, Alfred. Ivan sighed again, knowing the American would keep ringing until he answered, and pressed a button.<br>"Allo, dorogoy. What can I do for you today? Can't live without me for even half a day?"

"No, I need you, baby, come over right now and fuck me. Is that what you want me to say? Cause I ain't gonna. I'm fucking pissed off at my dad. Mum. Dad. Whatever he is. I just need someone to talk to, alright? So talk to me!"

Ivan stared at the painting on the wall in front of his desk. "I'm talking. So what do you mean with the dad/mum/not-sure-what-he-is thing? Please, do explain." he looked longingly at the brightly coloured flowers growing up towards the sun. They were happy, free, and didn't have an annoying lover constantly whining about something or other. He sighed. He knew he would be here for a long time. Alfred would whine and bitch about life in general until either he either got bored or his father went anywhere near his room. Apparently, while Alfred seemed to be open- perhaps a bit too open- about their relationship, the one person he didn't want finding out was his father. Probably because the man happened to be a teacher at the school as well, and Alfred didn't want his father to decide to pull Alfred out of the school and move somewhere else.

Surprisingly, when Alfred spoke again, it wasn't about how much his life sucked. Well, not entirely. "Well in its most basic form; my dad is my half brother's mum and my brother's dad is my mum. Confusing or what? But anyway, right now I'm fucking pissed that neither or my parents ever bothered telling me this info. And it turns out my half-bro knew it and never told me either! But then in his defense, I like, never talk to him. But anyway... I just need a hug or something. Probably the something, screw the hug. Can... Can I come over...? If it's not a bad time for you, that is..?"

Ivan continued to stare at the painted flowers, not speaking for a while. As he watched, the biggest, brightest flower in the picture began to change shape, into the form of the little blond boy he called his lover.

_These flowers represent the freedom I wish I had..._he thought to himself. _They turn to face the sun when they are small, then they focus on growing bigger and more beautiful, all the while reaching for the sky... And Alfred.. All children follow those they admire and trust, right? Their sun. They thrive to do their best and to make an impression; anything for attention. And all their life, they reach for the thing their heart desires most. Their sky. To be the best they can be. To do what they want to do. To be loved. And Alfred is just like that. And his sky.. The sky he is reaching for now is to be comforted. I understand that. It's all I wanted as a child. I was never given it. But I can give it to him._

"Dа ," he said softly. "Dа , of course you can come over, my little sunflower. You know I will always be here for you." _For as long as you still reach for the same sky..._

"Thank you so much, Vanya.." The boy's voice sounded relieved.

Ivan smiled. "I will be waiting. Ya tebya lyublyu."

"Ya tozhe tebya lyublyu. Oh, and Vanya?"

"Da?"

"..No sex. Not today. I just want to be with you."

_I just want to be with you._

"Okay. I am holding you to your word though. If you change your mind, I'm not going to listen."

"Vanya, I'm being serious."

"...All right. Mne zhal'. See you soon, my little sunflower."

"Yeah, see ya."

Ivan placed the phone on the desk with a little clunk. "I promise.. As long as you wish it, I will be your sky. But unlike the sunflowers in the painting, I will be the sky that you can reach..."

* * *

><p>*Translations =D<br>Allo, dorogoy - Hello, love.  
>Ya tebya lyublyu - I love you<br>Ya tozhe tebya lyublyu - I love you too  
>Mne zhal' - I'm sorry<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

..Sorry it's been a while :/ Blame the writer's block. I give you permission to stab it, in fact I'll join you. It's annoying the hell out of me. I shall now stop complaining.

* * *

><p>Matthew sat on Gilbert's bed, surveying the room and waiting patiently for the boy's return. Well, as patiently as he could wait. He wasn't joking when he said he needed a drink. But for now he would sit and wait quietly.<p>

He heard Gilbert stomping down the stairs and laughing uncontrollably at something or other. If he didn't know better, he would have said that the laugh sounded positively evil. He decided not to bother with wondering what he was laughing at. If it was of any interest then Gilbert would probably tell him anyway.

Matthew pulled his polar bear closer, studying the posters and sketches that covered the walls. Most of the posters were of bands he hadn't heard and games he'd never played. The sketches, when they weren't depicting Gilbert conquering the world or shouting "I'm awesome!" appeared to be of rabbits and birds. One of the sketches in particular was amazingly detailed and well-drawn as opposed to the other half-assed drawings. Matthew guessed that the picture was of a pet bird that Gilbert had been fond of, especially since Gilbert had written "Rest in peace, my most awesomest minion, my little Gilbird" in the corner. Matthew giggled at the bird's name. It was even pronounced exactly the same way as Gilbert.

There were some photos stuck to the wall as well. Matthew recognised one as their gang. Gilbert was standing in the front with Alfred trying to get in front of him. Matthew smiled at the memory of when the photo had been taken. Shelly and Lily were back-to-back, looking very serious and pretending that their hands were guns. Feliciano and Eli held hands; they had attempted to make Ludwig and Roderich join them for a Mexican wave (which had failed miserably). Matthew was in the back, barely visible. He tried to remember who had taken the photo. Probably one of the Baltic trio, he thought, before remembering that they hadn't been friends at that point.

It didn't really matter, maybe he could ask Gilbert if he knew. Matthew sighed. He wished he could go back to the day of the photograph. It had been Gilbert's party; his tenth birthday and it had been held at the park that was about ten minutes away from the school. He remembered his half-brother running up to him the day before, tackling him into a hug and announcing that he was invited to a party and that he could bring a friend, and if he wanted to come. Matthew had been surprised that Alfred had thought about him long enough to think to invite him. He had accepted, of course, and spent several hours with his father fussing over his clothes and hair, with Matthew complaining that it was only a party, he wasn't getting married or something. His father had just laughed, and soon Matthew was laughing too.

Matthew smiled into his bear's soft fur as he remembered wondering what to get for Gilbert. Francis had said that his presence aught to be enough and that Gilbert wasn't happy enough with that then he didn't deserve a present at all. Matthew had argued that that was hardly fair, but he had never been good at arguing and eventually settled for drawing a polar bear cub, because it was something he was good at and there had been one time when Gilbert had watched him draw and had commented that it was adorable and that Matthew was a really good drawer. So that was that, and when Matthew had given it to Gilbert, he had ranted on about how awesome it was for ages and had gone around showing it off for the rest of the day.

Matthew scanned the wall. Yes- there it was, half hidden behind a piece of paper that had something drawn on it, although it was too faint to see what it was from where he was. Matthew placed Kumajirou down on the bed and stood up, walking over to the picture. Written in terrible handwriting- barely legible- were the words 'it'll never be as awesome as Mattie's drawing but it's still awesome!' and had what Matthew assumed was Gilbert's attempt at redrawing his bear. Matthew lifted the paper away from the wall and smiled at his own drawing. It looked terrible compared to his current drawing skills but he supposed that since he had been nine at the time, he couldn't really complain.

Matthew turned around when he heard Gilbert push the door open and walk into the room with two glasses of juice.

"Haha, you found that, huh? Yup, it's still on my wall! It's been there for what, six years? And it isn't about to leave!" Gilbert grinned as he handed one of the glasses to Matthew. "Wasn't sure what you'd want, but oranges are so sexy, who wouldn't want orange juice, eh?"

Matthew smiled. "Juice is fine," he replied and drank the cup's contents in one gulp.

Gilbert laughed. "You weren't lying when you said you where thirsty!"

"I never lie." Matthew replied, turning back to the wall. There were quite a lot of photos of their group. Several were of Feliciano and Ludwig. There were less of Alfred, but Matthew supposed that made sense, seeing as they acted like rivals most of the time. Matthew wasn't surprised that he wasn't in many of the other photos, although there was one of him and Shelly with them both pinching each others' cheeks, glaring at the camera. Matthew laughed as he remembered, him and Shelly arguing over what type of cake Alfred should have at his party, Gilbert appearing out of nowhere and ordering them to smile for a photo, them glaring and refusing to cooperate, Gilbert taking a photo anyway, saying they would regret not smiling in years to come.

Gilbert looked at the other boy. "What's so funny?"

Matthew smiled at him. "This. Remember that?" he pointed to the photo.

Gilbert joined in laughing. "See, you should've smiled! Now that picture will remain on my wall forever, as proof of what happens when you don't listen to the Awesome One!"

"It's not really all that bad," Matthew replied. "Because no one ever notices me, let alone takes a photo of me. So I'm happy." Matthew smiled softly. Gilbert gave him a sympathetic look and Matthew wished he had his polar bear to hide behind.

"Well, I'm here and I can see you," Gilbert said. "And we are gonna formulate a plan to make people notice you. Yes, we are, no complaining. Good? Good. So, where were we?"

"Um... I'm not sure..." Matthew answered weakly.

"Whaaaat? That's no good! You'll never be a successful minion if you can't keep track of our process! You need to save every time you take down a major boss, ya got it? The amount of times I've been screwed over because of that... Seriously."

"Then let's start at the fourth floor of the dungeon, eh?" Matthew replied. "And since when does the Awesome One get screwed over by a mere mortal game? We truly are doomed!"

"WELL, it was a stupid game. Not my fault. It was so unawesome. Not even Alfred would play it." Gilbert nodded, trying to look convincing.

"If it was an unawesome game, why were you playing it?"

"I was trying to make it become more awesome, of course! But I failed. It was on such a terrible level of unawesomeness that even I couldn't save it!" Gilbert huffed and flopped back onto his bed, unintentionally landing on Matthew's toy bear.  
>Matthew immediately went to rescue it, but Gilbert grabbed his arm and twisted his own arm around Matthew's and spun the boy around so that Matthew was facing the other way. "Wh-wha?" Matthew yelped.<p>

"Relax, I am making it become more awesome!" Gilbert laughed and pulled Matthew back onto the bed.  
>Matthew glared and rolled onto his stomach. "Polar bear. Now."<p>

Gilbert shook his head, grinning, partially sitting up to pull the bear from under him, and placed the toy on the other side of the bed so that Matthew couldn't reach it. Matthew pouted and tried to reach over but Gilbert used one hand to pin both of the Canadian's arms down and proceeded to poke his cheek. "Heheh, that's fun." he laughed and kept poking.

"Giiiiilbeeeert..." Matthew whined. "That is so unawesome! You shouldn't be mean to your minions! You're becoming less awesome!"

Gilbert laughed more. "Don't try to manipulate me! Anyway, when you're this awesome, you can do unawesome things and still be awesome! And 'sides, it's not unawesome to play with your minions every now and then, right?"

He reached up and ruffled Matthew's hair again, then returned to poking his cheek until he noticed that the boy was on the verge of tears. Immediately he released Matthew's arms and stopped his assault on his face. "Hey, you okay? I'm only playing with you..." He picked up the polar bear and hugged it. Huh, it was really soft. No wonder Matthew loved hiding behind it.  
>"Say I'm awesome and you can have him back, 'kay?"<p>

Matthew looked at him for a second, then smirked and grabbed the bear, then rolled over so he was facing away from the Prussian. "Hehe, I win this one~! Honestly, someone as awesome as you shouldn't be so gullible!"

Gilbert sat up, realising that Matthew had tricked him. "That is so unawesome, Mattieee! Uuuunaaaaawesoooome! Unawesome, you hear me?"

Matthew only laughed. "Sure, sure, believe what you want to. You just don't want to admit that I beat you!"

"Did not!"

"Did too~! Did too~!" Matthew was laughing uncontrollably now.

"Hey, you're in my house right now, you should be nice to me!"

Matthew rolled over to face him. "I am sorry, truly sorry, Oh Awesome One, can you ever forgive me?"

Gilbert's pout turned to a smirk in an instant. "That's more like it! You are forgiven, little one! You are a very valuable minion, I can't afford to be on bad terms with you or I can't rise to full awesomeness and save the world!" Gilbert sat up. "By the way, minion, since my dad leaves for work early and my mum's on a holiday or something, will you make breakfast? Pleeeeease? Pleeeease?"

Matthew sat up too, and smiled. "Sure.. Is pancakes good?"

Gilbert's eyes lit up. "Yes! Yes! Pancakes are very good! But shit, that means we'd have to wake up earlier, cause they take a while to make, right?" Then Gilbert realised something. "...Hey Mattie? You said you'd help me with my current situation at school, riiiiight? And you were sick earlier today, riiiiight?"

Matthew wasn't sure what Gilbert was suggesting, but it probably wasn't good, considering the look on the albino's face could be compared to that of a madman. "...Y-yeah..? I did... And I was... Errrrh, how can I help?"

Gilbert's grin grew wider that should be physically possible. "Weeeeell, I have a suggestion to make. We say that you're still not feeling so good and that you can't get home and I can't just leave you here and so therefore, neither of us can go to school tomorrow~! And then, I have three days to come up with a solution to my problem. AND, as an added bonus, we can start thinking about how to make people notice you! It's a win-win solution, right? Right? You may praise me and my awesomeness now!"

"..I'm not sure... I mean, we missed the French test today..." Matthew sighed. He knew he would give in soon enough, but that didn't mean he was particularly happy about missing out on school. Matthew would always be reluctant to skip school, no matter who was asking him.

"Whaaat? Don't tell me you're gonna pass up an opportunity to miss school? And besides, we don't have French again until Tuesday, so whether we're at school or not tomorrow, it won't matter. So c'mon, stay here tomorrow? Pleease? Pleeease?" Gilbert gave him his best puppy-dog eye look, which melted any traces of resistance on Matthew's part.

"...Fine, but I'm going to study or something for part of the day. A bit of extra study for the test won't hurt. You should, too."

Gilbert grimaced. Not the best compromise in the world but still, if it meant him getting out of school and being able to fix up his situation.. Then it was worth it. Maybe. "But, I don't need to study! I speak fluent French!"

Matthew raised an eyebrow disbelievingly. "Really. Prove it."

Gilbert looked away. "...Croissant, baguette, meringue... Yup. That's the entirety of the French language, ja? Ja. I don't need to study."

Matthew laughed. "That might be a bit more effective on someone who doesn't have a French father. You've barely covered one billionth of the language, if that. And if that's all you need to know to be fluent in a language, I can speak fluent German. Wurst, schnitzel, pretzel. Oh and for extra points, bier, kohl, kuchen. There."

Gilbert stuck his tongue out. "Hey, no fair! And German is damn sexy, you're not allowed to laugh at it and stuff!"

Matthew waved his hand dismissively. "Yes well, now we're even. Ah," he blinked. "I should probably tell papa that I'm staying here... I'll ring him."

"Hey, don't change the topic. But ja, sure."

Matthew nodded and stepped out onto the verandah.

Gilbert let the smile disappear now that the Canadian was gone. He leaned back and stared at the ceiling, mentally going through a few ideas to solve his predicament. After about ten seconds, he got bored of it and instead turned his thoughts to the pure deliciousness that was pancakes, and wondered whether or not Matthew was any good at making them. Probably, he decided. The kid was good at nearly everything, the only exception seemed to be socialising. He was too shy. No matter, that could be fixed.

Gilbert pushed the thoughts out of his head when Matthew entered the room again. They could work through the problems together later on. For now, he just wanted to be able to hang out with Matthew, and leave all the difficult thinking for later.

"You can stay?"

"Oui."

* * *

><p>I DON'T KNOW.<p>

Quick translation thing;

bier; beer

kohl; cabbage

kuchen; cake

Hopefully I will get the next chapter up in under half the time it took to get this one out.. We shall have to wait and see.  
>LOL just thought I should mention. My original idea for Ivan was that he was gonna be a crazy teacher with an obsession with mirrors. BUT Edzky wanted RusAme and that idea kinda died :  
>Just... Imagine that he still has an obsession with mirrors. Because it's funny. Oh and also, when I upload the next chapter, I'm going to change the name of the fic, just so you know. I shall now shut up :3<p> 


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